Les Miserables Oshawa Little Theatre 2014 Production Call Notice - REVISED Director: Music & Vocal Director: Choreographer: Producers: Stage Manager: Costume Designer: Michael Schneider Carol Salamone Baiba Senecal Ted Sellers & Tristan Smith Tristan Smith Brenda Clarkson Synopsis: In 19th century France, Jean Valjean is released from 19 years of unjust imprisonment, but finds nothing in store for him but mistrust and mistreatment. He breaks his parole in hopes of starting a new life, initiating a life-long struggle for redemption as police inspector Javert, who refuses to believe Valjean can change his ways, relentlessly pursues him. Finally, during the Paris student uprising of 1832, Javert must confront his ideals after Valjean spares his life and saves that of the student revolutionary who has captured the heart of Valjean's adopted daughter. His world-view shattered, Javert commits suicide, and Valjean at last attains the peace he has sought for so long. Epic, grand and uplifting, LES MISÉRABLES packs an emotional wallop that has thrilled audiences all over the world. The sung-through pop opera is ideal for a cast of exceptional singers and overflows with melodies that are already standards; it is its powerful affirmation of the human spirit that has made LES MISÉRABLES a popular masterpiece. AUDITIONS: Sunday, May 25th, 5:30 – 9:30 Monday, May 26th 6:30 – 10:00 (NEW) Tuesday, May 27th 6:30 – 10:00 All auditions are booked timed auditions – please log onto the Theatre Website at www.oshawalittletheatre.com and click on the “Auditions” tab to register. If you experience any difficulties then please contact [email protected] CALL BACKS: Tuesday, June 3rd 6:30 – 10:30pm (Location to be confirmed) AUDITION REQUIREMENTS: Song #1: A Song showing your strengths as a singer as well as dramatic quality. Song #2: A song from the show. Please bring sheet music that is bound or in a binder for the accompanist; you may choose to sing a cappella but please no karaoke or pre-recorded music. You will NOT be required to prepare a monologue; you WILL lbe required to demonstrate a dramatic quality in your song presentation. You must be able to act in character while you sing. You will be required to do a group movement audition. Please bring appropriate footwear. Auditions are booked in one hour time slots; please arrive early and plan to stay for the entire 60 minutes (we may run a bit over). Auditions are private. Location: Oshawa Little Theatre, 62 Russett Ave., Oshawa, ON Rehearsal Dates: There will be a cast meet and greet/info night on Tuesday, June 17th at the theatre. Costume measurements will also take place at this time. Rehearsals begin Sunday, August 24th and will be Monday & Wednesday 7:00 – 10:00, Sundays 1:00 – 6:00pm. Thursday rehearsals will begin October 30th There will be no rehearsals over the Labour Day Long Weekend or on the Sunday of Thanksgiving Weekend. There will be a regular rehearsal Thanksgiving (October 13th ) at 7:00pm Performance Dates: November 20,21,22, 27,28,29, December 4,5,6, 11,12 at 8:00pm November 30, December 7, 13 at 2:00pm Cast must be available for all performances. CASTING INFORMATION: Cast Type: Dance requirement: Casting notes: Children in Cast, Ensemble Cast - Many featured roles, Older Role(s), Showcases trained singers, Strong/Large Chorus Minimal. But there is choreographed movement. 3 – 6 Children, 5 Men, 4 Women, Large featured ensemble (Children’s roles may be double cast) Character Breakdown Alphabetically BABET BAMATABOIS BISHOP OF DIGNE BRUJON CHAIN GANG CLAQUESOUS Member of Thenardier's gang of thieves. Physically frail. He is lean and cunning. C sharp(below middle C) to E Bamatabois is the "customer" who taunts Fantine into violence. He is dressed in expensive clothes. He is a wealthy dissolute young man who thinks of himself as a gentleman. He is drunk and in a sadistic mood and chauvinistically feels it is his right to buy anything, even Fantine. D (below middle C) to High D The Bishop is a good man who saves Valjean with his compassion. Don't overlook the importance of this role. The Bishop of Digne's compassion carefully establishes the premise of the show by literally buying Jean Valjean's soul for God. Low A to High E Member of Thenardier's gang of thieves. Pysically very strong. The body of a bear and a pea sized brain. A genuine gangster, he is stupid and evil. C sharp (below middle C) to E The Chain Gang consists of Jean Valjean's fellow prisoners. There are four soloists (indicated as convict 1,2,3,4.) The overall vocal range of the convicts is low and they should be able to sing in a rich baritone if possible. Low F to High E flat Member of Thenardier's gang of thieves. Tough, dangerous and secretive. COMBEFERRE CONSTABLE 1 & 2 COSETTE COURFEYRAC ENJOLRAS EPONINE FACTORY GIRL (GIRL 5) C sharp (below middle C) to E Member of the ABC Society. The philosopher and believer in peace. He is gentle, humane, strong and brave. Low A to F There are two Constables with solos in the show. E to High E The beautiful daughter of Fantine. She is strong willed and loving. She is an intelligent, inquiring, personable girl. She is not in any sense a "soppy" romantic heroine. Once adopted by Jean Valjean, Cosette lives a comfortable, if secluded life. She is challenging to Valjean, behaving always with imagination and dignity. She falls instantly in love with Marius, changing her world and her priorities. B flat (below middle C) to High C (2 octaves above middle C) Member of the ABC Society. A student. He is youthful, passionate and fearless. Low A to F The student leader. He is handsome,brave and daring, although youthful. He combines his revolutionary ideals with a strong charismatic leadership. He is described by Victor Hugo as "a thinker, and a man of action". On the barricade he physically and vocally should dominate everyone else. He should ooze with charisma, be a natural leader, be good looking, and have a very strong high baritone or a tenor voice. Remember, Enjolras must lead the students to fight and ultimately die. His death at the barricade is one of the dramatic highlights of the show. A to G (above middle C) The daughter of the Thenardiers. She is a young girl who is streetwise and tough, but also sensitive and lonely. She is in love with Marius, knowing that he will never love her. She bravely follows Marius to the Barricades in the hope that they will die there together. Once grown up, Eponine moves with her family to Paris where they fall on hard times. Now poor, living hand to mouth, she survives by helping her father break the law. Eponine is a tragic character, hopelessly in love with Marius. She sings one of the most famous numbers in the show, "On My Own," and should therefore be an excellent singer with a contemporary edge to her voice and an excellent actress. F sharp (below middle C) to E The Shop Girl who fights with Fantine. She is mean, catty, and selfish. She also is most likely having an affair with the Foreman and jealous of Fantine. FANTINE FARMER FAUCHELEVANT FEUILLY FOREMAN GAVROCHE GRANTAIRE JAVERT E (below middle C) to D flat (above middle C) Fantine is the beautiful young girl who, abandoned by her lover, is left to fend for herself and her daughter Cosette. She is rejected by society and forced through circumstances to become a prostitute. She is a brave woman defeated by life, sustained by her love for her daughter and clinging to her dignity. Sick with consumption, we witness her descent through poverty, hunger, cold, loneliness and destitution to death. She is a noble character, whose life becomes is a series of terrible events that rob her of her pride, character, and ultimately her life. G flat (below middle C) to D The Farmer has solo lines that are a bit difficult to sing. There may be additional non-singing farmers. Middle C to D flat The victim of the cart crash. The role requires a few solo lines and some painful yelps. B (below middle C) to E flat Member of the ABC Society. A worker, self-educated and an orphan. A believer in "nationality." Affectionate, warm and poetic. Low A to F The Foreman begins Fantine on her downward spiral of desperation. He should be virile, commanding and a bit sleazy around the edges. D (below middle C) to D Gavroche is Thenardier's son. He is left to fend for himself and lives by his wits in the streets of Paris. His "arch enemy" is Javert the Policeman. He is brave and witty. Think a young Artful Dodger. Gavroche has a very dramatic death at the barricade. B (below midde C) to G Member of the ABC Society. A student. He is the opposite of Enjolars. He believes in nothing. Although he admires Enjolras, he loves to mock him. Witty and drunken, he is happy being with the group and the put up with him because of his good humor. He also keeps a watchful eye on Gavoche, the mascot of the group, and is most heartbroken when Gavroche is killed. So much so that Grantaire abandons his cynicism and rushes to die on the barricade. Low A to F The inspector who serves as antagonist to Jean Valjean. Javert is unswerving in his belief that men cannot change for the good. "Once a thief, always a thief" is JEAN VALJEAN JOLY LABOURERS LESGLES MADAME THÉNARDIER MARIUS his mantra. At first glance Javert might appear to be the villain of the story, but on closer examination it is clear that he is not an evil man. He is aware that in society some people achieve control through evil and others through power of the law. He is a dedicated policeman, with a profound sense of duty. Unlike Valjean he cannot change. His attitudes are rigid and unmoveable. He is stern, forbidding and lacking in compassion. Javert should be an actor who can convincingly stand up to Jean Valjean. Low F to High F sharp The hero of the show. It is his life journey that we follow. Jean Valjean is supposed to be stronger than other men, and so physically should appear robust. He should resaonably carry himself as mature and paternal. Valjean's ability to change is his greatest asset. the key to his character is his great humanity and compassion. Jean Valjean is a vocally demanding role. Low A to High A Member of the ABC Society. A medical student. Eccentric and light-hearted, although sometimes morbid. His name is derived from the English word "Jolly." Low A to F The Laborer has solo lines that are a bit difficult to sing. There may be additional non-singing laborers. A sharp to D flat Member of the ABC Society. A student. Cheerful. laughing at life but unlucky. His close friend is Joly. Low A to F She is the wife of Thenardier, Madame Thenardier is as "one" with Thenardier. Together they con the world as partners in crime. They were made for each other, although she complains about him, she loves him deeply. She is coarse and vulgar, unhappy in her existence without knowing why. She is romantic, greedy, stupid, evil and larger than life. She is mean and nasty to Young Cosette and able to improvise in nearly any situation. G sharp (below middle C) to D The handsome romantic hero of the story. He is impulsive, passionate, willful and headstrong. His moods change according to his circumstances. He is sweet and tender but also capable of great courage and compassion. In Act 1 Marius plays Romeo to Cosette's Juliet. Marius matures after the Cafe Song as a result of his experiences on the barricade. Marius should have a lovely, lyrical voice with a contemporary edge. MONTPARNASSE OLD WOMAN PIMP PROUVAIRE SAILORS THÉNARDIER YOUNG COSETTE YOUNG EPONINE Low A to High A flat Member of Thenardier's gang of thieves. A teenager. Handsome and dangerous. Kills with a knife. He is well dressed, strongly built and supple. C sharp (below middle C) to E The Old Woman is a nice feature part. This is the character that purchases Fantine's hair. E (above middle C) to D The Pimp controls the prostitutes at the docks. he is mean, aggressive and abusive. The Pimp has a small solo line in The Docks. E (below middle C) to D Member of the ABC Society. A student of social studies. He is kind, softly spoken and at the right moments strong and masterful. He is also a poet. Low A to F Three sailors begin The Docks scene. All three have solos. Low C to middle C The true villain of Les Miserables. He is embodiment of evil. That said, he should also possess a wicked sense of humor. He delights in cheating, robbing, fraud and blackmail, relishing every aspect of them with glee. He is tough, greedy, brutal, stupid and creafty and yet irresistable. He hates society and blames it and everyone else for all his misfortune. thenardier is also the opportunist and realist of the show. He is a thief, a liar, a cheat, steals valuables from the dead with no remorse. He is also the comic relief of the production. However, his comedy is based in reality and shouldn't be too exaggerated. He is married to Madame Thenardier and father to Eponine and Gavroche (although he has abandoned Gavroche to the streets of Paris.) C (below middle C) to G sharp (above middle C) The child of Fantine. She is the ward of the Thenardiers forced into child labor and sings "Castle On A Cloud." She is a trembling little creature, underfed, beaten by Madame Thenardier and bullied by Eponine. Cosette is small and looks properly pathetic and yet warms the audience's heart who should be sympathetic to her plight. A (below middle C) to C Little Eponine is the pampered daughter of the Thenardiers. She does little except enter the stage and taunt Little Cosette. The role requires no singing or speaking. She should be a smaller version of grown Eponine and resemble Eponine in appearance and features. Non-singing All performers must become members of Oshawa Little Theatre to perform on stage. All question and inquiries should be directed to Michael Schneider at [email protected]